No Place Like Home
by lovelyMary
Summary: My version of Brenda's return. Slightly AU. Features Brenda, Sam, Jason and Lucky.
1. Chapter 1

_Rome -August 2010_

As she sat in her office looking over the contracts her lawyer had sent over, she couldn't seem to get her mind to focus. She hadn't gotten any sleep and her mind insisted on replaying last night's events on an endless loop. Over the years, she'd had her fair share of brushes with death but last night's attempt felt different. That guy had come way too close and had scared her more than she would ever admit to anyone. She had a sinking feeling that her past was finally catching up to her and she knew there was only one person who could help her. But she just couldn't bring herself to call him.

The ringing of her cell phone startled her out of her thoughts. She glanced at her caller ID half expecting to see his name flashing on the screen. As if maybe by some bizarre act of fate he would know that she needed him. She frowned slightly as she realized that fate had not intervened on her behalf.

"What the hell happened last night?" Sam's concerned voice greeted her before she had the chance to get a word out.

"Well hello to you too."

"Hello. Now what happened? And why did I have to read about it online?"

"Nothing happened. I'm fine. The bodyguards caught the guy before he got anywhere near me. It's fine, really." She wasn't sure who she was trying to reassure more, Sam or herself.

"How can it be fine? This guy tried to slash your face and from what I've been reading he damn well nearly succeeded."

"Well, you should know better than to believe everything you read on the internet. Why are you up this late anyhow? Isn't it like three a.m. in Port Charles?"

"I was working late and decided to see how fabulous my sister looked on her big night. Humanitarian of the year, that's pretty awesome you know."

"I guess. I'm just glad that the Foundation is getting more media attention." Out of everything that she had achieved since she left Port Charles, The Morgan Foundation was by far her most rewarding accomplishment.

"So how's everything with you?" she asked eager to shift the focus off of last night.

"Well now that you mention it, I was actually calling to let you know that I'm going out of town for a little while and you might not be able to reach me."

"You're not in trouble are you?"

"No, not more than usual, but I think Lucky might be."

"Is everything ok with you two? Did you tell him about us?"

"Yeah, everything's fine. He understands why we wanted to keep things to ourselves for a while." When she found out that she and Brenda were sisters, they had both agreed that it would be best to keep their relationship under wraps so that they could get to know each other without any outside influences.

"Good because if this deal goes through I'm going to end up back in Port Charles and we won't be able to hide it anymore."

"Yeah, well we both knew we'd have to leave our safety bubble one day," Sam teased.

Brenda burst into laughter at the visual Sam had just given her and felt herself relax a little for the first time since the attack last night.

"Anyways, it looks like maybe Lucky's gotten in over his head so I'm going to go help him out. I can't really talk about it though."

"Ok. Just be careful. "

"Always."

Brenda hung up the phone with a smile and tried not to worry about what Sam was up to. She was still getting used to the idea of having a little sister who was a danger junky. She couldn't believe it had already been almost two years since she had found out that she and Sam had the same father.

_January 2008_

"_Wow, this is unbelievable," she said as she stared in shock at the documentation the other woman had given her. She had certainly been quite thorough in her investigation and it seemed fairly obvious that there had definitely been a connection between Harlan and Alexis. But Brenda still found it hard to believe that he father would have had a relationship with someone as young as his eldest daughter was. Julia was going to flip and would undoubtedly require more solid proof._

"_Look, I know this sounds totally farfetched and you probably think I'm just looking for a payout or something but I'm not."_

_A few months ago Sam had finally worked up enough courage to ask Alexis about her father. She was shocked to learn that Alexis had had a brief affair with one of Mikkos' business associates. Harlan Barrett. The name was common enough that Alexis had never made the connection between her clandestine affair and the famous model that she had known for years. It hadn't taken long for Sam's investigation to lead her to Brenda. She knew though that it would take more than Alexis' word to convince Brenda and Julia that she was their sister. No doubt they would assume that she was conning them in hopes of earning a quick buck. So she had made sure that she had as much proof as she could get her hands on._

"_Well I certainly appreciate your efforts. You obviously went through a lot of trouble to get all this evidence and while it's quite convincing, we're going to have to do a DNA test to be sure." Although Brenda was practically certain that Sam wasn't scamming them, she knew that a DNA test would be the only thing to convince Julia._

"_Of course," Sam said with a small smile as she let out the breath she hadn't realized she had been holding._

_After everything she had been through in the last few years, she was finally starting to take real control of her life and was discovering who she really was as a person. She still shuddered at the thought of how she had completely lost herself in her relationship with Jason. Her entire world had revolved around him and when he ended things it hadn't taken long for her to quickly spiral into self-destructive behaviour. She wished more than anything that she could erase the events that occurred that summer but she knew she couldn't. All she could do was move forward and try to repair the damage she had caused. While she and Jason had never been able to get back to where they had been, she was slowly mending her relationship with her mother. For the first time in her life she had a real family: a mother who genuinely cared for her and little sisters who admired her and looked up to her. And now her family also included two older sisters. _

"_So there's this really cute coffee shop down the street that has the best pastries. Maybe we could go grab a cup of coffee and talk. You know, get to know each other a little," Brenda said in an attempt to make the situation a little less awkward._

"_That sounds great." _

* * *

Sam looked around her apartment one last time before zipping up her duffel bag and grabbing her passport off the desk. She knew something was up when Lucky told her he was going after Luke and declined her offer to tag along and help him out. It had taken some convincing but she had finally managed to get Dante to tell her what he knew after she caught him on what was obviously a call with Lucky. She couldn't believe that Interpol had sent Lucky after someone like the Balkan with hardly any information and no back up. Trust was a huge issue for both of them, each having suffered their share of heartache as a result of deception from those they trusted most. But this was different, and despite being hurt by the fact that Lucky had lied to her, she wasn't about to leave him high and dry when he needed her. Thankfully, Spinelli had been able to uncover quite a bit of information about Ronan O'Rielly which was sure to be more than what Interpol had given Lucky. She just hoped she wasn't too late.

* * *

Kate walked into Jax's office and handed him the sales contract that had arrived this morning. She hoped that the generous offer would please him enough that he wouldn't ask too many questions about who she had chosen as her replacement. When she had been offered the position of Media Coordinator at Cartullo Fashion House she knew that this was an opportunity that she couldn't pass up. Ernesto Cartullo was one of her fashion icons and there was no way that she could turn down an opportunity to work with him even if it meant leaving Crimson. She hated leaving the magazine that had been her creation and was now one of the top selling fashion magazines in the state but she knew she had found the perfect replacement in Brenda. She and Brenda formed an amicable business relationship in the last couple of years, both sharing professional admiration for the other. The former model had created her own little media empire: _Bella Enterprises_. The conglomerate included a record company, a cosmetics company, a small fashion house as well as several fashion and lifestyle magazines. She knew for a fact that Brenda was actively involved in the success of each of those companies and that was why she was sure that Crimson would thrive as the latest addition to Bella Enterprises. The only caveat is that Brenda wants complete ownership of Crimson which means that she has to convince Jax sell his shares without revealing that Brenda is behind the buyout.

"What's this?" Jax asked as he looked up from his laptop.

"That's the offer for the buyout. You need to sign it so that we can send it out as soon as possible. I'm scheduled to be at Cartullo in less than a month and we need to make sure that the transition goes as smoothly as possible."

"Whoa Kate, slow down a minute," Jax interrupted. "Certainly you don't expect me to just sign over ownership of Crimson without going over the details do you?"

"Well there isn't time for that. You're just going to have to trust me. Crimson will be in very capable hands. And they're offering you ten percent above market value so you'll be getting a very substantial return on your investment." Kate said hoping to seal the deal quickly.

Jax sighed and grabbed his pen. He didn't like rushing deals like this but Kate had a point. He was going to get a substantial return on his investment and Carly would certainly be happy that he would no longer be involved with the magazine. Jax signed the last page and frowned, _Bella Enterprises_. Why did that name sound familiar?

"Is something wrong?" Kate questioned worriedly.

"Ah... no everything is fine. I have every confidence that you wouldn't hand over Crimson to just anyone." He said as he handed back the contract to her.

"Thank you."

Kate grabbed the papers and headed for the door as quickly as she could without arousing any suspicion. She had to messenger these back to Rome before Jax changed his mind.

* * *

"Spinelli!" Jason yelled as he entered the penthouse and went straight to the safe.

"Yes Stone Cold. How may the Jackal be of service?" Spinelli said as he stumbled down the stairs.

"I need you to get me on the first flight to Rome." He ordered as he grabbed his passport and some cash from the safe.

"Rome? What urgent business could Stone Cold have in the city of love?" Spinelli questioned as he opened his laptop.

"Don't ask questions. Just get me on the next flight out. Now."

He'd gone to Kelly's for some coffee and hadn't meant to look at the forgotten tabloid lying on the counter but for some reason it had drawn him in.

_Brenda Barrett attacked at awards ceremony_

The headline made his blood boil and had him rushing back to the penthouse. With any luck he'd be in Rome before nightfall. He knew that she probably wouldn't be happy to see him and it was possible that he was overreacting but he just couldn't take that chance.


	2. Chapter 2

As soon as he landed at the Leonardo da Vinci airport, he knew he had made the right decision. All the TV stations were playing footage of the attempted kidnapping that took place a couple of hours ago. While Jason was sitting on a plane flying over the Atlantic, Brenda had been grabbed by two guys on her way out of the offices of Bella Enterprises. Thankfully the paparazzi were staking out the building and gave Brenda the perfect opportunity to get the upper hand on her captors and escape. They never should have been able to get that close. Now that he was here though, he would make sure that those thugs never came near her again.

He sighed as he got ready to knock on her door. This was not going to be pretty.

As predicted she answered the door without even asking who was there.

"Oh my God!" she said in disbelief as she immediately tried to close the door when she saw him.

She was no match for him though as he easily entered the apartment despite her protests.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she screamed at him once he was inside.

"Why the hell didn't you call me last night?" he screamed right back.

"Why would I do that? It's no big deal. I'm fine. I happen to have my own security detail you know."

"Yeah some security, you've been attacked twice in less than twenty-four hours."

"Oh please. And people say _I'm_ a drama queen," she said waiving off his obvious concern.

"You are. You're also stubborn and completely unreasonable especially when it comes to your safety. You do realize that these attacks are not random right?"

"We don't know that for sure," she said, refusing to admit that she agreed with him. She had just spent the last hour working herself into a complete frenzy over the possibility that the Balkan was behind all this.

She was scared. He could see it in her eyes, and the last thing he wanted to do was to scare her even more but he needed her to take this threat seriously if had any chance of protecting her.

"Brenda, we both knew this was a possibility," he reminded her. He had hoped that it would never come to this, that they could leave the past buried where it belonged. But if this year had taught him anything, it was that secrets always had a way of coming out and hurting those they were designed to protect.

She sighed and dropped down onto the couch, resting her head in her hands for a few seconds as the stress of the past twenty-four hours finally took its toll.

"I don't understand how he would even... I mean why now?" she asked softly looking up at him her eyes begging him for any kind of reassurance.

"I don't know. I have people looking into it. But the most important thing right now is keeping you safe," he said as he took a seat next to her.

She sighed again as she moved to look out the window, the close proximity to him making her uncomfortable.

"I won't let him anywhere near you. You know that, right?"

"I know."

She knew Jason would keep her safe, she trusted him more than anyone. He'd promised her three years ago that he would protect her from the Balkan and she knew he would stop at nothing to make sure he kept his promise. Even if it cost him his life, and that thought scared her more than any threat the Balkan could throw at her.

_April 2007_

"_Jason?" she couldn't believe her eyes. While it wasn't unusual for Jason to be in New York she was still stunned to see him there._

"_Brenda."_

"_What are you doing here?"_

"_I uh was out on a ride and ended up here. What about you? I thought you were still in Europe."_

"_I was. I mean I still am. I'm just here for a job."_

"_That's good."_

"_Yeah, Jason listen I don't know if you got my messages or not but I'm really sorry about Alan. I, um, really wanted to come but I wasn't sure if that was a good idea."_

_He just nodded, not sure what to say. It was no secret that his relationship with his father had been tense at best. He hadn't realized how much his actions had hurt his father and now it was too late for him to fix it. _

_They both stood there for a few seconds neither knowing exactly what to do or say next. It was then that Jason noticed the police officer standing a few feet behind her._

"_He with you?" he asked nodding in the officer's direction._

"_What? Oh, yeah," for a second she had forgotten about her police escort. God she hoped he wouldn't make a big deal about this. Who was she kidding, this was Jason; of course he was going to make a big deal about this. She could already see his jaw twitching. _

"_Are you okay? You're not in trouble are you?" he asked his concern obvious._

"_No. It's nothing really, it's just..."she stopped suddenly as a wave of dizziness overtook her._

_He saw her gently sway and was quick to steady her._

"_What's wrong?"_

"_Are you okay Miss Barrett?"_

_Jason and the officer asked simultaneously._

"_Maybe you should sit down." Jason suggested as he started to lead her over to a park bench._

"_I'm fine, I'm fine," she reassured them both. "I just got a little bit dizzy you know. I had photo shoots all day and I haven't really had anything to eat yet. I'm fine really."_

"_Okay. Then let's go get you something to eat." _

"_Sure, that's sounds good," Brenda agreed and then turned to the officer who was nervously eyeing Jason. "Why don't you go back to the hotel? I'll be fine. Jason will make sure I get back safely."_

"_I mean no disrespect Miss Barrett, but I've been assigned to guard you. It wouldn't be right for me to just leave you alone."_

"_But I'm not alone. Jason is with me. I'm perfectly safe."_

"_Okay, I guess if you're sure."_

"_I am."_

"_Alright then," he said as he started walking back towards the hotel._

_

* * *

_

"_So now are you going to tell me why you have a police escort?" They were sitting at this small Italian restaurant that she swore had the best pizza._

"_I'll tell you but you have to promise not to get all Jason-like about it. Okay. Please."_

"_What the hell is that supposed to mean? Just tell me what kind of trouble you've gotten yourself into so that I can fix it."_

"_Of course you just assume that it's my fault. Besides, it's not your job to fix anything for me, we're not married anymore, and you don't owe me anything. You don't even like me."_

"_Brenda, just tell me what's going on."_

"_Nothing's going on. Apparently I seem to attract psychos like moths to a flame," she admitted sadly. "I was sort of seeing this guy in Europe and then I found out that he was a criminal and liar about it to boot. So I broke things off and he's just having a hard time letting go."_

"_So he's stalking you."_

"_Yeah, I guess. He started showing up wherever I went, insisting that we belonged together and stuff. So, I went to the police and they provided me with protection."_

"_Do you really think that's going to stop him?"_

"_I don't know I guess. I mean that's part of the reason I took this job. I figured if I distanced myself from Europe from a while he'd get the hint you know."_

"_I'm not so sure about that."_

"_Look can we just talk about something else right now? What's new in Port Charles, I mean aside from the obvious," she asked desperate to get Jason off the topic of her psycho ex._

"_Elizabeth's pregnant," he just blurted out. He hadn't meant to say anything but it's not like Brenda would ever tell anyone if he asked her not to and, she wasn't even staying in Port Charles anymore. The truth was he really needed to talk about this, and Brenda was for all intents and purposes an impartial third party. Ever since he had found out, he hadn't been able to think of anything else. That's why he had gone for a ride; he had hoped to clear his head and figure out what he was supposed to do. Maybe there was a reason he ended up here with Brenda. _

"_Um, ok. That's nice," she said, wondering exactly why Jason would tell her about Elizabeth's impending motherhood, unless..._

"_Oh my God, are you?" she didn't wait for him to answer; the look on his face said it all. "Wow, so I guess congratulations are in order."_

"_Not exactly, Elizabeth she uh...we decided it would be best if everyone continues to believe that Lucky is the father."_

"_Oh Jason, I'm so sorry," she knew this must be killing him. She saw firsthand how happy Jason had been when he had been raising Michael and how hard he tried to hide his disappointment when the little boy called Sonny daddy._

"_Yeah well it's for the best. My world isn't safe for children. Lucky and Elizabeth will give the baby a good life."_

"_It can't be easy though. Seeing Elizabeth, knowing she's carrying your child and not being able to do anything about it."_

"_It's hell, but it worth it" he admitted. "Are you okay?" he asked as she pushed her plate away. He couldn't help but notice that she looked a little pale as if she was about to be relieved of her dinner._

"_Oh, yeah it's fine," she said as she took several small sips of her water. "I probably just ate too much. Are you ready to go?" she asked eager to escape the smell of garlic that was suddenly making her feel sick._

"_Yeah sure thing," he said as he motioned to the waitress for the bill._

* * *

"_It's a beautiful night. Isn't it?" she said as he walked her back to her hotel. _

"_Yeah, it's nice," he nodded and was happy to see that the fresh air seemed to have done her some good as she looked decidedly better than she had earlier._

_They had just entered the small alley when Alexander cornered them._

"_Hello Brenda."_

"_Alexander, I told you I don't want to see you anymore."_

"_Stay away the hell from her," Jason ordered as he protectively pulled Brenda behind him. _

"_She's mine," he growled as he charged, catching Jason off guard as he moved to pull out his gun._

_Brenda stood there in a state of disbelief as she watched the two men fighting. Alexander had somehow managed to get the upper hand as he pinned Jason against the wall, using his forearm to cut off his air supply._

_She couldn't let him die, so she did the only thing she could think of, she picked up Jason's gun and aimed it at Alexander's back. She took a breath to steady her hand and pulled the trigger. He immediately pulled away from Jason as the bullet reached its intended target. Unfortunately, Alexander was not easily deterred as he turned around to face Brenda._

"_You bitch," he snarled as he moved towards her._

_Acting on instinct, Brenda pulled the trigger two more times, finally succeeding in subduing their attacker._

_Jason raced over to her after quickly checking to make sure Alexander was dead._

"_Oh my God, oh my God, this can't be happening, this is not happening," she cried hysterically._

"_Brenda it's okay, everything's going to be okay," he reassured her as her moved to take his gun from her hand._

"_You don't understand; it'll never be okay. He'll kill us if he ever finds out...oh God, this can't be happening."_

"_Brenda what are you talking about? Who's going to kill us?"_

"_Alexander's father, he's a major gangster. That's why Interpol got me protection, oh God what have I done?"_

"_Brenda, I need you to calm down okay. Please." They had to act quickly and now wasn't the time for her to completely lose it._

"_Okay, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," she said as she took a few breaths._

"_Brenda, listen to me. I'm going to take care of this, okay. It's going to be fine. I promise. You just have to trust me. Okay?"_

"_Okay," she nodded as she silently thanking her lucky stars that she had run in to Jason tonight._

* * *

"So what's the plan?" she asked him, turning away from the window.

"Well, for starters we're going to have to revamp your security because it sucks."

"I'm sorry did you just say my security 'sucks'," she couldn't help but laugh in spite of the seriousness of the conversation. "Sucks, really? Is that your professional assessment?"

"Hey, I just call it as I see it," he said with an almost imperceptible smile. "They suck."

"Okay, so what are you suggesting exactly?"

"Honestly, I think you should come back to Port Charles with me. I can't fight him from here. I'll have the advantage in Port Charles."

"Okay."

"Okay? Just like that," he asked sceptically.

"What? Were you expecting a fight?"

"Of course, I mean you fight me on pretty much everything."

"Well, I'm sorry to disappoint but it's late and I'm really in no mood to fight right now. Besides, I was planning on heading to Port Charles anyway."

"You were," he asked still suspicious about her sudden agreeability.

"Yup. You happen to be looking at the new owner of Crimson," she said with a mischievous glint in her eyes.


End file.
